Royals bats on display in intrasquad game

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- This is the time of the baseball year, training camp, when the pitchers are supposed to be ahead of the hitters.

Yet, as the Royals beat the Royals, 5-2, in an intrasquad game on Monday at the Surprise complex, the hitters seemed to be ahead of the pitchers. They hammered out 15 hits, including two home runs, and drew six walks in a six-inning game.

Manager Ned Yost, however, chose not to take sides after the first game action of Spring Training.

"This is a taste of competition in a low-key setting and in one inning you try to get them [the pitchers] acclimated to competing again, and I thought it went well," Yost said. "All the pitchers threw fine; I thought all their stuff was really good, I thought we swung the bats really well."

"He got his pitch count up. His command was off a little bit but that's to be expected early," Yost said. "He threw like 24 [pitches], and we try to keep them around the 20-pitch mark their first time out."

Two other pitchers with their sights on that starting job, Luke Hochevar and Wade Davis, weren't dazzling, either. Hochevar gave up four singles, a walk and two runs, although he did get Eric Hosmer to rap into a double play. Davis gave up a home run to Carlos Peguero and a double to Alcides Escobar, but he did notch two strikeouts.